To the Sun, Moon, and Stars Above
by collegiate-trash
Summary: If one were to go back in time to ask Malik Ishtar if he'll ever consider Bakura a friend, let alone become his best friend, the answer would have been a resounding no. And yet here they are, working side-by-side for their guild's 10th anniversary. Life was going great for him until the world turned topsy-turvy with Bakura's recent revelation. "I'm getting married!"
1. Bakura's Announcement

**Full summary:** If one were to go back in time to ask Malik Ishtar if he'll ever consider Bakura a friend, let alone become his best friend, the answer would have been a resounding no. And yet here they are, considering each other as their partner-in-crime while working side-by-side for their guild's 10th anniversary. Life was going great for him until the world turned topsy-turvy with Bakura's recent revelation.

"I'm getting married!"

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Shout-out to everyone who helped me work on this! Here's to my awesome beta Lilyliegh who taught me the essence of tenses. I really appreciate it- thank you! I would also like to thank Admin T for the wonderful banner and theazureavenger for the amazing artwork that can both be seen here[1]. And lastly, DistractedDream for that really great playlist- I love it! You all made my first big bang really special, thank you so much!

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" _She was a strange child, quiet and thoughtful; and while her sisters would be delighted with the wonderful things which they obtained from the wrecks of vessels, she cared for nothing but her pretty red flowers, like the sun, excepting a beautiful marble statue. It was the representation of a handsome boy, carved out of pure white stone, which had fallen to the bottom of the sea from a wreck."_

 _-_ Hans Christian Andersen, The Little Mermaid

…

If one were to go back in time to ask Malik Ishtar if he would ever consider Bakura a friend, let alone his best friend, the answer would have been a resounding **no.**

Who would want to be that boy's friend really? He was an asshole of massive proportions with a mouth that rivaled that of a sailor. Bakura had made quite a reputation for himself; he was known all over Domino as a downright rotten apple: failing grades, endless records of truancy, reports of theft, and _so_ much more. It was really surprising how he and Malik became the closest of friends. Practically polar opposites by appearance alone—Malik's tanned skin and blond hair against Bakura's bleached skin and ashen hair— the two were also different in such a way that Malik was practically the poster child of society's ideal child: highest marks in class, overflowing talents, polite demeanor—everything a parent could have ever asked for. Truly, the only thing the two shared with one another at that time was their mutual indifference for everyone around them and, apparently, each other.

Thankfully, all of those habits changed due to a certain white-haired adviser. If Pegasus had not forced the two to join his then-upstarting theater guild, none of this would have been possible and the world would forever bemoan the loss of two of its greatest theater actors.

' _Come to think of it, he is running late to his own meeting._ '

Ever since the day it was established, members of I2 had agreed to meet every Sunday morning unless otherwise stated by their "magnanimous" president or because it was a holiday. And would you look at that, it was the first Sunday after their last performance, a rendition of the classic _Genie of the Lamp_. It was one of Malik's many favorite stories.

Malik frowned and jumped down the crate he was perched on. Glancing around the room, he spotted a certain blue-eyed brunette flailing her hands away while speaking with someone on her phone. He made his way to her to ask just what was keeping Pegasus and sighed in relief when he saw her slumping her shoulders. Not that Malik minded waiting for her to finish the conversation; it was just that Malik hated standing around near people without doing something. Call him an attention-whore but Malik Ishtar simply _could not_ stand by waiting for someone to turn their attention to him when he was clearly in need of it.

"Hey Anzu, any news?" Malik said casually with his left hand resting on his hip.

"Oh, hi Malik," Anzu replied while pocketing her phone. "Did you see that?" she asked, covering her face in shame when he nodded. "That was so embarrassing… Anyways, Pegasus said that he'll be running late." Seeing Malik raise an eyebrow, she immediately raised her hands in mock-defense before continuing. "Don't look at me. I have no idea what's going on either. Maybe it's related to the next show?"

"I won't be surprised if it is. It _is_ pretty important." Malik grinned along with Anzu.

After all, every member of the guild knew just how important the upcoming show would be. Not only would it be their last show of the season, it would also mark the guild's 10th anniversary. To think that the guild first started as a punishment program for a couple of delinquents back in highschool. Even Malik couldn't believe it sometimes. Granted his joining of the guild had been an accident, Malik can't help but be thankful for it. If it weren't for the guild, he wouldn't have found his passion in life, he wouldn't have been able to fix his bond with his family, and he wouldn't be able to befriend Bakura.

Come to think of it, where was he? He should have been here ages ago. If there was one thing Bakura's reputation got wrong, it was that he was always late. Between the two of them, it was usually Malik that ran late during their meetings while Bakura quietly scolded him with his eyes from afar. Malik voiced his concerns to Anzu and received a confirmation that she hadn't seen him either.

"Sorry I can't help more, Mal," she said with a placating tone.

"Don't sweat it, you already got your hands full with Pegasus anyway; I'll just stay in a corner and sulk until he gets here."

Fortunately, before Malik could fret anymore, the theater's mahogany doors opened with a resounding click from its golden knobs. All actions halted within the room and all heads turned to welcome the newcomers. There standing in all his glory was their beloved adviser and founder, Maximillion Pegasus, once again wearing his favorite burgundy suit. With the grace of a man swimming in his own pile of money, Pegasus strutted inside followed quietly by a pale ghost.

Hair as white as snow and skin as pale as a man's bones, his trademark black leather trench coat was practically the living embodiment of death itself. If that was not enough, his brown eyes were dark enough to appear red from a distance. Sometimes the thought of Bakura low-key cosplaying 24/7 crossed Malik's mind, but it was always ignored. After all those years of being together, Malik had enough evidence to disprove anyone who claimed that Bakura's features were fake.

Regardless, everyone settled into their respective seats for the meeting: new recruits in the front, seniors at the back. Except for Malik. Malik was special.

From the day the guild was just being formed, Malik remained seated on the stage itself, just a few meters away from the podium. This seat was special because it was while sitting in this exact same spot back in highschool that Malik decided to join the theater. Many argued that if Malik was allowed to sit anywhere he liked, then they should be allowed to too. Unfortunately for them, Pegasus was a very organized man. Thus, all their complaints were met with a vehement no. And besides, Pegasus had grown rather fond of Malik. Very few things made the boy happy at that time, who was he to take that privilege from him? Before long, all arguments were forgotten and everyone learned not to question Malik's special seat.

Noticing Bakura was still following Pegasus onto the podium, Malik raised an eyebrow and whistled to get his attention. He then nodded to the space beside him with a grin. For a while, Bakura did nothing but glance at Pegasus and Malik. Then with a resigned sigh, Bakura headed towards the spot Malik allotted for him.

"What was that about?" Malik whispered the moment Bakura was comfortable in his seat.

"You'll see," he simply replied with a secretive smirk, earning him a raised eyebrow courtesy of Malik. A moment of tensed silence passed between the two before Malik decided to just let it go and focus more on what Pegasus was saying.

"It better be good, or I'll punch you."

Bakura, the guild's resident asshole, just snickered. Why was he friends with this guy again?

"Good morning, everyone~!" Pegasus greeted with a smile for all of them. Once the murmur of greetings being said back died down, he continued on with his remarks. "Once again, I would like to thank you all for a job well done during our last show. You've all made me so proud." A round of applause followed his statement before he nodded and continued on. "As you all know, this season's end is fast approaching. And as was tradition, we need to make our last show amazing. But this show should also be more extraordinary than usual because of it is also this guild's—"

" _ **10**_ _ **th**_ _ **anniversary celebration!**_ " the entire room hollered and cheered, effectively cutting off the poor man.

"Yes, yes, quite. Now, if you'll all settle down and let me finish," he said sternly but the pleased smile on his face was enough to let the rowdy guild know that they were not in trouble. "We will be accepting suggestions for the new play later but for now—" Pegasus' smile seemed to falter a little before he continued sullenly "—someone will be sharing a short message with us." He then moved away from the podium.

Bakura stood up and walked towards it. This new discovery was enough to cause hushed conversations to occur within the room; Bakura wasn't exactly into socializing, every member knew that. Other than Malik, and the occasional conversations with Anzu and Pegasus, Bakura usually avoided talking to people unless necessary. The only time people could actually talk to him properly was when they were practicing, and even then it was usually to criticize them or to be crude towards them. The members were all used to this and wouldn't trade these interactions for anything else; Malik said that that was just how Bakura showed he cared for people, and if that was really how it was then they were happy to be part of the select few the Ice Prince cared for. However, be that as it may, the curiosity sparked by Bakura's sudden appearance on the podium was something that couldn't be ignored.

"Hello everyone. For those who don't know me, I'm Bakura," he said, arms crossed and an air of apathy around him that enticed the crowd to listen. "As some of you may know, I've been in this guild ever since it was formed. It's been fun working with all of you, but I believe it is time for me to go."

A couple of shocked gasps followed the bomb Bakura just dropped. Not from Malik, of course. Malik was Bakura's best friend, his wing man, his partner in crime—he already knew about this way before Bakura even told Pegasus. Bakura personally asked him to keep it a secret in order for the guild to remain ignorant about it until the time was right. Obviously, Malik readily agreed. Bakura would always be a troublemaker at heart so this wasn't surprising. And besides, the chaos that resulted from Bakura's confession was amazing, even Malik had to admit that. And so with a grin, Malik remained quiet from his seat and continued to patiently wait for Bakura's big surprise. He honestly had no idea what it is, but he'd trust Bakura's word for it to be amazing.

"Oh come off it, we all know it was going to happen sooner or later," Bakura remarked with a scoff before proceeding with a smirk on his handsome face—a smirk that promised nothing but chaos in its wake but it's okay. Everything would be all right, Bakura said so.

"We all have a life outside of the guild, which leads me to this point..."

Bakura paused to look around at everyone's excited faces before settling down by his partner in crime. With a fond smile, he wondered just how Malik managed to change him during the course of their friendship; then again, he managed to rub off Malik too, didn't he? Malik used to be apathetic to everything but now he was always smiling, enjoying everything the world had to offer. It suited him. Malik would always hold a special place in Bakura's life no matter what happened. If it weren't for him, Bakura would have never learned to see the good in people and would have continued to see them as fiends. He admitted that without Malik, he wouldn't have been able to do this; Malik gave him the push he needed to move on to the next level. And so, with one last affectionate look at his partner, Bakura turned to the crowd and gave his announcement without looking back, completely ignorant of how the light faded from his friend's eyes much like how the world was cast into darkness when Apep finally succeeded in devouring Ra.

"I'm getting married!"

Bakura expected applause and cheers to follow his revelation, not deafening silence. Scrunching his eyebrows up in confusion, he turned to see Malik looking down, unable to maintain eye contact. Frustration crept up Bakura. With ragged breaths, he clenched his fists tightly enough for blue veins to paint his pale hands. Thankfully, Pegasus seemed to notice this and hurriedly clapped his hands, snapping everyone out of their shock.

"Congratulations, Bakura!" he cheered half-heartedly, a tone which Bakura ignored. "I must say, this is a surprise!" He laughed, happy to alleviate the mood in the room a little. "So when is the wedding? Most of all are we invited?"

"Dibs on being the best man!" someone from the back hollered.

"Like hell! Malik's going to be my best man!" he immediately retorted before growing unsure of his response. With how Malik reacted to his surprise—Bakura cautiously glanced at his friend. Malik seemed to be out of whatever trance he was in earlier and was now staring at him with wide, shocked eyes coupled with a blush visible through his dark skin. "I mean…" Bakura mumbled as he stared at Malik's stunned form. "…if you want to—" His face grew hot with each word uttered. Brows wrinkled in irritation, Bakura cursed himself for being embarrassed by such a simple thing. Looking away to save what was left of his dignity, he was forced to look back at Malik when chiming laughter reached his ears.

"Stupid fluffy," Malik snorted while wiping away the tears that formed due to his laughter. Maybe it was because he was already embarrassed but Bakura chose that moment to glare at Malik's usage of his personal nickname for him, causing laughter to fill the room. "Of course I'll be your best man. No one else is more qualified for that spot other than me, you know." He stretched his hand out to Bakura.

With a huff, Bakura helped Malik up and said with their hands still linked together, "I know. That's why you're not allowed to leave my side until I'm dead."

"You sure about that?" Malik raised an eyebrow before continuing, "You already look dead so…"

"Be serious!" Bakura punched his arm and smirked. "Then again, I suppose you're simply stalling seeing as you can't do it."

"Oh please, I can do _so_ much better. I'll bring you back to life and force _you_ to haunt the living."

"…don't be a dick, Malik. You know what Ryou does to the ghosts he captures."

The two stared at each other's eyes, neither willing to back down until Malik's lips started to curl upwards.

"Okay, I admit that was a bit harsh. You've already suffered enough from Ryou after all," he said before snickering at how Bakura's hair rose up at his statement, just like a cat that had been drenched in water.

The two went on teasing one another, blissfully unaware of how to their co-actors who were still seated and quietly watching them, the pair seemed to be covered in an ethereal glow from the spotlight on stage. And while many thought of the two as some sort of actors portraying a love story, Anzu couldn't help but feel as if she was witnessing the opening of a tragic play.

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[1] hates links. Kindly copy-paste the link, delete the parenthesis and spaces in between to see all the wonderful art associated with this fic - www. ygobigbang. dreamwidth (.org) (slash) 9474. html


	2. Anzu's Script

Hi! Sorry for the way late introduction! This is my entry for this year's **YGO Big Bang**. This is actually a repost of the one from ao3, under ThatRandomFan. I hope you all like it.

 **For the guest who reviewed:** Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked it ^^

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…

" _ **I know what you want," the sea-with said; "it is very stupid of you, but you shall have your way, and it will bring you to sorrow, my pretty princess."**_

…

"Now that that's settled, any suggestions for what we should perform?"

The entire guild decided to eat out for lunch before starting the official meeting to celebrate Bakura's soon-to-happen wedding. Of course, they all made Pegasus pay for it. The man didn't mind though, he simply said ' _So long as my children are happy then so am I._ ' The subtle implication that no one could truly pay for the five-star food in front of them was graciously ignored by everyone at the table. Instead, most of them teased him for being sappy; some ignored him in favor of doing something else. Bakura, for example, used this time to seek out Malik to ask just what happened to him earlier when he gave his announcement. Unfortunately, Malik's attention seemed to be monopolized by Mazaki today seeing as those two couldn't seem to get enough of each other. Ever since the guild left the theater to eat, the pair has stuck with each other, talking about only god knows what.

Bakura didn't mind all that much though, about time his best friend got himself a girlfriend. ' _Not that Mazaki is the best candidate for that seeing as she's still pining for that shorty Mutou.'_ He snorted at the thought before shaking his head and continuing his reverie. Seriously, Bakura had been secretly insecure of Malik's uncanny ability to attract everyone. Men, women, Malik had fans everywhere for god's sake. It was annoying how he wouldn't just take one already and call them his lover. Every single time someone mustered up the courage to confess to him, he politely rejected them, claiming to be waiting for someone. Bullshit. Bakura has been with him ever since highschool and not _once_ did he ever see Malik show any attraction to anyone. At all. He supposed it could be someone back from Egypt but given Malik's feelings towards his homeland, that was probably wrong too. Figuring that maybe his friend was merely using that as an excuse for people to leave him alone, he decided to roll along with it. Over and over, Bakura told him that the one he was waiting for wasn't coming anymore, even if Bakura was starting to have doubts about this person's existence due to how much Malik vehemently denied his accusations. And yet when all had been said and done, Malik would just smile covertly at him as if he was an idiot. ' _I guess I'll be alone forever then, won't I Bakura?'_ And he dared to call him the stupid one, ha!

Sighing to himself, Bakura forced himself to focus on the flamboyant man who was once again behind the podium. Yes, they were once again back in the theater, discussing what to do for the last show of the season, and for Bakura, the last performance of his life. His fiancée, simple girl that she was, wished for a quiet, domestic life—a life Bakura could never give her so long as he was part of this industry. While not as dazzling as its counterpart, the theater still earned him his fair share of fans.

Bakura loved his fans. No, really. He loved them a lot, but sometimes, they could sure as hell be scary. One time they sent him a love letter for Valentine's Day and it was written in their blood. Suffice to say he and Malik barricaded themselves within their dorm room for three days, watching Hitchcock films non-stop in order to forget what happened, until Mazaki came to console them. ' _With fans like that…_ ' He shuddered at the thought of what some of his fans would do to his fiancée should they find out about her identity. Maybe he should have asked Malik how he kept his fans at bay; they were some of the most well-mannered fans he had ever seen. It was amazing.

Sighing once more, Bakura slumped on his seat, still making sure to keep a lookout for Malik. Ever since they came back, his cohort had remained elusive to Bakura.

 _This meeting would have been better with Malik._ He scowled as he glared at Anzu with his arms crossed.

Anzu felt a shiver crawl up her spine as she stood up to say her suggestion. Shrugging it off as the breeze the air conditioner behind her made, she ignored everyone's stares as she spoke. "I think we should do our personal rendition of the original Little Mermaid." She then walked up to the stage to hand over Pegasus her notes. "I already figured out the best actors for the main cast along with our story's outline."

Pegasus merely blinked at her, surprised by Anzu's sudden subtle but demanding tone. He had watched his children grow and mature through the years, and he was pretty sure that Anzu had grown out of her "demanding tone" phase along with Bakura's thieving tendencies years ago. Huh, surprise, surprise he supposed. He finally managed to get back his composure and laughed. "Well you're oddly prepared."

"Not really, Malik kinda helped me with it a little."

He merely hummed and paused when he read the story's synopsis. "…Isn't this from the novel you've been writing?"

"…Would that be a problem?" she asked with a guilty smile and tinted cheeks, her bravado from before seemingly disappearing into thin air.

He shook his head and patted her head. "Of course not; however, would it really be all right with you? I was under the impression that you were going to publish this."

Anzu shrugged and grinned at her mentor.

With a shake of his head, Pegasus browsed her notes, nodding to show his understanding.

The silence that followed was filled with anxious energy. Everyone waited with baited breath over Pegasus' verdict of their new play. Disappointing as it was, most were thinking of Disney's Little Mermaid when Anzu suggested her idea. What exactly _was_ the original version? Was there a secret version of it? If so, how could they get their hands on it? And the most important question of them all, were they going to sing?

The guild members were all gifted with their own individual talents thereby creating a diversely talented community, a fact that everyone in the room could be proud of. Unfortunately, the ones who were truly gifted with music and the art of singing were only a handful of them. Kind of ironic seeing as how the theater's first act when it was established was a musical. Save for Bakura, with his melodic tenor, and Malik, with his impressive dual-tone ability (" _For the last time, it is called countertenor_!" a voice that oddly sounded like Pegasus rang in their ears), the members really couldn't remember anyone else singing onstage during a performance. Well, the seniors _could_ remember some but they weren't members anymore so...

"Hm, this is really well thought out… I like it!" Pegasus exclaimed, "This will be our story for the play."

Everyone gulped simultaneously.

"…Does it mean we have to start practicing singing soon?"

"What?"

"What?"


	3. Bakura's Role

…

" _ **Your beautiful form, your graceful walk, and your expressive eyes; surely with these you can enchain a man's heart."**_

…

It was just the first day of rehearsals and Bakura was already pissed.

A day was all Anzu needed to finalize the script and another for Pegasus to proofread it. Soon after, the two conducted auditions for the cast and posted the results on the theater's bulletin board the very next day. Pegasus made it clear to everyone that Anzu's word made a huge impact on who would be casted. He said something else about respecting people's intellectual rights but Bakura stopped listening to him after that. Let's just say that the results weren't exactly favorable to him. Bakura had always stayed away from roles concerning royalty and the rare ones he actually auditioned for, he had been rejected without a second glance. Pegasus always told him that he wasn't _princely enough_ so excuse him if he was feeling suspicious of suddenly being casted as one.

"I still can't believe that I'm the prince," he grumbled in his seat, a chair left unattended in the stage's left wing, while watching the stage hands work on their props.

"Well, you better believe it buddy. I'm not changing the cast list just because of you," the guild's resident friendly brunette said. Who would have thought that Domino High's beloved princess would associate herself with Bakura? Definitely not him. Then again, that was before they all got roped in into Pegasus' playhouse. Regardless, here they were now, some form of friendly not-friends co-workers.

With a snort, he chose to ignore her—damn that bitch for sticking her tongue out to him like a child—in favor of watching Malik immerse himself in practicing his piece on the piano, a melodious tune that oddly resembled his sister's lullaby. Huh. Guess Peggy asked him to play that tune for some actual sentimentality. Based on what little he knew of the mermaid, her actor must have been able to dance gracefully and play the piano properly because she'd been playing it since she was a toddler or something. Good thing for them Malik could actually play the piano; then again, even if Malik couldn't play it Bakura was sure they could still find a reason for him to play her. After all, Malik was the best candidate for the mermaid based on looks alone. Too bad for them, they wouldn't be able to hear Malik sing since the play would start with the prince waking up on the shore after being rescued by the mermaid. Damn shame to be honest, he was one of the few who were looking forward to hearing Malik sing for the play. Oh well, their loss.

Resting his arms on the back of the chair in order to cradle his head as he watched, Bakura slowly forgot that Anzu was right beside him. It was around that time that Malik opened his eyes and stared straight into Bakura's eyes. He found himself blushing when he realized just how well the lights appeared to make Malik's hair glow like some sort of halo, making him appear even more angelic. His face grew even hotter when Malik noticed this and snickered at his expense before once again throwing himself to the piano's magical world. Likewise, Bakura also snapped away from his reverie when Anzu spoke once again.

"I know this will be your last time performing with… _us_. That's why I figured, we might as well make you the prince. Consider it a goodbye/thank you present."

Bakura turned to look at her better and was surprised to see some odd melancholy enveloping her features despite the smile on her face. He supposed that it couldn't be helped. Among all the original members of the guild, only he, Malik, and Anzu were left, Pegasus too if you really wanted to count him. Most of the original crew left as soon as they graduated like that scrooge Kaiba and know-it-all Atem. Some stayed for a while before leaving as well like Malik's sister, Isis, the guild's only true soprano. Throughout the years, their unlikely trio had stuck with each other through thick or thin to keep the theater going. With him leaving Anzu and Malik alone like this, there was bound to be some sentimental shit in there or something.

"I believe it is best for you and Malik to enjoy your last moments together," she said while staring straight at Bakura with a determined face. Call it intuition or whatever it was you people called it, but he felt as if Anzu was threatening him. And so he straightened up from his slouch and said evenly, "Just because I'm retiring doesn't mean that I'll be leaving good, old Mariku behind." He then leaned back as if to warn Anzu to stay away and smirked, "We'll always be together, you'll see."

"If you say so…" Anzu frowned and walked away with a visible less bounce on her steps. She paused slightly and addressed Bakura once more. "By the way, did you know that the original script of the Little Mermaid was actually revered by many as Dickens' secret love letter to a friend of his?"

Scrunching his eyebrows together in confusion, both from Anzu's rather odd behavior and out-of-nowhere question, Bakura shook his head. "You know I'm not much of a reader, Anzu." He smirked before curling his lips up a little. "Now, if you ask Malik that question…" He felt a laugh bubbling in his chest at the thought of his Egyptian friend.

"…You should really read into things more, Bakura."

What was this crazy chick talking about now? He stood up and crossed his arms with a scowl, his very own signature look, before voicing out his thoughts only to be answered with silence as Mazaki ignored his inquiry and continued to walk out of the room. Choosing to pay no further mind to her antics, Bakura turned to watch Malik once again only to see no one by the lone white piano. With stiff jaws and hands clenched tight in his pockets, Bakura left the theater to rest for the day.

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This one's a tad short so I'll most likely upload the next one tomorrow.


	4. Pegasus' Intervention

…

 _ **The prince asked her who she was, and where she came from, and she looked at him mildly and sorrowfully with her deep blue eyes; but she could not speak.**_

…

One would have thought that Pegasus was a kind man, what with his ever smiling face and kind demeanor and all. But you know what they say, don't judge a book by its cover. With that said, all assumptions about Pegasus were **wrong**. **They were all wrong.** That man was nothing but a sadist! Forcing them to practice non-stop like that, as if they were not living beings but machines—bloody hell! How Bakura managed to survive ten years of working like that was beyond him. But at least the man finally decided to give them a break, not that Bakura was actually going to rest. No, he was going to hunt down a certain dumb, blond Egyptian. Ever since that talk with Anzu, the idiot had been avoiding him like the plague. It would have been all right if he was subtle about it but _no_. Every time Bakura entered a room, Malik left, hastily might he add. Whenever he finally succeeded to corner him, his partner always managed to get away. He said it once and he'd say it again: Bakura Touzoku _hated_ the day he taught the boy how to be as slippery as an eel. It was a great skill but an annoying one when used against him. Malik could go and hide and run away as much as he liked, but if there was one thing that would never change, it was the fact that Bakura always got what he wanted. And he wanted Malik's head. _Well not really his head per se, more like what was going on inside that pretty, little head of his._ With those thoughts in mind, Bakura proceeded to hunt for Malik.

Heart beating as fast as his mother's Celtic drums, he looked for any signs of Malik backstage; he checked the loo, the studio, the backstage, heck he even went out of the theater just to check the idiot's favorite shops but he just couldn't find him. Only when Pegasus announced that break was almost over did Bakura decide to pause his hunt. Looks like today wouldn't be the day after all. A dejected groan escaped him as his entire body slumped over the velvety chair that had hundreds of doppelgangers in the theater.

 _Well look who decided to show up_ , Bakura thought with a scowl as he caught sight of his favorite blond passing through the doors with a certain grace only he could do. He smirked in his seat as Malik moved towards him and handed Bakura a cup while taking a seat next to him to enjoy his own drink. Bakura leaned back and stretched his legs with a pleased sigh to fully enjoy the calming aroma of his tea. Holding the cup snuggly in his hands, Bakura closed his eyes and inhaled the heavenly, citrus, cologne-like scent.

"Figured you needed one," Malik mumbled more to himself than his companion as he took a sip of his chai tea. Movement caught his eyes causing him to glance down at Bakura who seemed to have managed to curl himself up on the chair. He then gave Bakura a tired look when he raised an eyebrow at him. "Anzu and the others told me," he said in response, causing Bakura to immediately scowl at him. "Oh please, as if you running around like a mad man isn't enough cause for worry," he scoffed before taking another sip of his tea. "It's as if they think I'm your guardian…"

Bakura tore his eyes away from Malik's face and turned to look at his tea with a conflicted expression. He shifted on his seat, his tea remaining untouched. "…I was looking for you."

"Well here I am now," Malik replied after gulping down the rest of his drink, watching Bakura open his mouth only to close it again repeatedly with his infamous poker-face on. Bakura's hesitance to say what was on his mind was taking its toll on Malik's patience, and yet he remained silent. His charisma really must have been something because a simple encouraging look was all it took for Bakura to speak up. That, and the fact that Malik was starting to make a move to leave.

"I didn't mean to keep it a secret," he hurriedly whispered. "She wanted both of us to tell you but then things got in the way and then shit happened. Then you started acting weird when I told everyone about it and _**dammit Malik**_ _talk to me._ " Bakura glared at Malik with his face flushing bright red. If this was any other occasion, he would have celebrated; this was one of those rare times that he had managed to stun Malik into silence. However, his silent gaping was not helping Bakura's nerves and he swore if he didn't say anything soon—

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Malik trying in vain to stifle his laughter. Watching him filled him with so much ire that his fists clenched tightly on his seat, imagining that it was Malik's slender neck. Thankfully for both of their sakes, Malik managed to compose himself and gave Bakura one of his dazzling smiles. "I know," he said in an equally hushed tone.

Pleased at the turn of events, Bakura allowed himself to relax and smile back at Malik. "Good."

With those words said, the two enjoyed the comfortable silence they'd learned to enjoy in each other's company.

"Ishtar! Touzoku! Just because you're the leading actors doesn't mean you get to laze around! **Get back in here!** "

The two flinched at their adviser's harsh tone before looking at each other and sharing a laugh. Looks like some things just didn't change.

* * *

I'll probably end up updating this everyday now so- peace out!


End file.
